Marvel Run Jump Smash! features cartoon-styled versions of Marvel Cinematic Universe characters (and some other superpowered guests) who are perpetually sprint after Loki, the adopted brother of Thor and villain from The Avengers, to reclaim the Cosmic Cube, which is what I will always call it because “The Tesseract” makes me cringe, and all of this just makes me sound like a giant nerd, but the point is that it’s an endless runner with superheroes.

It’s not a great one, but hey. Marvel.

You earn gold for upgrades based on how far you run and how many coins you collect. I don’t know why you don’t just use the coins, but whatever.

Marvel Verbs! has you playing primarily as an agent of planetary-defense agency S.H.I.E.L.D. with support from a team of superheroes. You can initially choose between Nick Fury and Maria Hill with Iron Man, Captains America and Marvel, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow, Spider-Man, and Hawkeye backing you up. Not all of these characters are available at the start, but you’ll unlock the rest quickly enough.

Once your team is put together, your agent takes off, collecting coins, fighting enemies, and always, always running. Picking up a superhero token summons the corresponding character, and you play as them for a little while before the meter runs out and you switch back to Fury or Hill.

And that’s all well and good, I guess, but it’s also one of the major problems with Marvel Insufficient Punctuation!: I don’t want to spend most of my time as Man or Woman With Gun; I want to play as a damned superhero with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men.

Yes, I know that’s a Superman reference.

The game has a few other serious issues. First, you need a constant Internet connection (via wi-fi or your provider’s network) to play it, which kind of defeats the purpose of that whole “mobile” thing.

Second, and more seriously, is that Marvel Things You Do! has a nasty habit of slowing down at key moments. Most of the times I failed were because I was basing my jumps and shots on how time was functioning in my universe and not the random, stuttering version in the game. And when you fail, you start the whole thing over because it’s an endless runner and that’s how those things work.

Game Name: : Marvel Run Jump Smash!The Good: Lots of characters, and the different powers provide variety.The Bad: You’re usually playing as non-superheroes, the framerate drops, and the always-on requirement makes no sense for a portable title.The Verdict: I can see the decent game hiding in there, but technical and design issues hold it back.Buy from:App Store – Marvel Run Jump Smash! – Studio Ex